Red Bean Paste
by MaidenInTheMoon
Summary: Ichigo and Rukia discuss what it means to have power in the human world and in Soul Society. In the process, Ichigo has a mild slip of tongue. [light IchiRuki, IchixRuki]


Summary: Ichigo and Rukia discuss what it means to have power in the human world and in Soul Society. In the process, Ichigo has a mild slip of tongue. light IchiRuki, IchixRuki

X X X X X X X

"_Jeez_ _Rukia, how could you not know that cell phones have a vibrate option?_"

Rukia's mouth narrowed into a line, and she shot Ichigo a nasty look. The black-haired shinigami clutched her cell phone tightly and busied herself with exploring its other options, completely ignoring the boy's comment.

Rukia's hollow detector, a.k.a. cell phone, had started beeping wildly in the middle of math class. She was promptly sent to the principal's office. To the surprise of no one—sans Keigo—she had managed to worm her way out of the situation. Ichigo could only imagine the starry-eyed gaze she had probably given the principal as she apologized and explained in her most saccharine voice.

It was Friday afternoon. The Kuchiki princess and substitute death god were on their way back to the Kurosaki clinic. Both were looking forwards to a relaxing weekend.

"I don't understand how humans put up with this . . . this thing they call _homework," _Rukia sighed as she hopped through the open window in Ichigo's bedroom.

Ichigo smirked as he watched her disappear into his room. The orange-haired boy opted to enter the house through the front door. Only when he had almost reached the landing of the stairs did he regret his decision.

"ICHIGO-O-O! YOU'RE NOT BEING VIGILANT ENOUGH" came a booming voice from the kitchen. Ichigo turned around just in time to dodge his father's attack, and the elder Kurosaki slammed right into the first two steps on the stairs, leaving a smoldering wreckage.

Yuzu looked out of the kitchen, a wary expression on her young face.

"Ichi-niii, I made mochi for the first time! Try some?"

The girl offered a plate full of squishy pink, green and white balls to her elder brother. Ichigo took the plate and muttered a characteristic "ah" before stepping on his father's head—in lieu of the first step—and proceeding up to his room.

Rukia and Kon were sitting on the bed when Ichigo entered. Rukia had changed out of her school outfit and was wearing her usual one-piece dress. Oddly enough, Ichigo did not recognize the light blue and sea green pattern on it.

"Oi, Rukia, where did you get your dress?"

Rukia looked up from the magazine she and Kon were pouring over. Kon followed likewise and spotted the mochi in Ichigo's hand.

"MOCHIIII!" Kon squeaked loudly as he launched off the bed towards the plate. Ichigo's foot intercepted the mod soul's trajectory. Neither Rukia nor Ichigo flinched as the stuffed animal went flying into the wood floor. Even during Kon's little outbreak, Ichigo and Rukia had not lost eye contact.

The girl's face suddenly broke into a silly grin.

"After I went to see the principal, I decided I might as well dodge class and go to the store. I bought this dress and this magazine."

Rukia held up the magazine in the same fashion that she held up her artwork. The cover faced Ichigo, and he took note of the suited man smirking from it. The wording on the magazine read: _Japan's 100 most powerful men_

Ichigo set the plate of mochi down on his desk, and he plopped into his chair, ignoring a limp Kon slithering slowly towards the desert.

Rukia leafed through the magazine. Ichigo noticed that she was going too fast to be actually reading the articles. When she reached the back cover, she slowly closed the book and looked up.

"How strange, not a single one of these men looks capable of even holding up a Zanpaktou, much less reach Bankai." Rukia ran her thumb over the pages of the magazine, and the pictures of wealthy, powerful men blurred by. It was as if she was speed-checking her assessment.

"Eh, Ichigo—what does it mean to have power in the human world?" Rukia asked in her calm, yet assertive voice, the same one she used whenever inquiring about the world she was so unfamiliar with.

Ichigo's brows knit together, making him look evensterner than usual. Had Orihime seen him at that moment, she might have fallen into a fear induced coma.

"Ah . . . well, in the human world, guys like Ishida usually end up on top."

At Rukia's quizzical look, Ichigo explained further.

"I don't mean Quincy Ishida, I mean school Ishida, you know, top of his class, best marks and all that."

Rukia's face melted into one of deep contemplation.

"So in the human world, one needs to be good at adding and multiplying and such foolish things to have power," she asserted.

"Mmm . . . something like that," Ichigo answered. He was busy staring at Kon, who had managed to get his jaw glued together by Yuzu's red bean paste. Ichigo watched a sobbing Kon dive into Rukia's closet. The stuffed lion apparently preferred to regain his dignity in private.

Rukia's gaze narrowed, and a delicate smirk spread across her face.

"Ne, Ichigo, what does it mean to have power . . . to _you_?" Rukia asked, her voice low and silky.

The orange-haired boy went rigid in his seat. For a few silent moments the air was punctuated by nothing but Kon's whimpers from the closet. Then Ichigo spoke.

"Ah . . . I suppose . . . it means being able to protect the one's I care about."

"And those would be?"

Ichigo stared at Rukia, as if trying to figure out what she was getting at. The girl's gaze remained steady, however, and Ichigo carried on, uncertainty in his voice.

"Well, my family, my friends . . ."

"And?"

"And . . . y . . . y . . . Yuzu and Karin?"

Ichigo had not meant to inflect his voice, but his last statement came out, oddly, as a question. Rukia burst out laughing.

"Yuzu and Karin don't already count as your family?" Rukia asked in between chuckles. She raised a thin eyebrow at Ichigo. The boy simply looked back at her.

"Forget it, I'm going out. Your sister's mochi doesn't seem to great," Rukia noted as Kon appeared from the closet, panting with his mouth wide open.

"DEVIL RED BEAN PASTE!" Kon screamed as he fell forward onto the ground.

Rukia was perched on the windowsill, ready to leap outside. She turned back to look at Ichigo, and their eyes met.

"Baka, I was trying to get you to say 'and you'" Rukia whispered as she jumped deftly out the window.

Ichigo watched her figure disappear down the street.

"I know," he muttered.

"YOU KNEW THIS WAS DEVIL RED BEAN PASTE!"

X X X X X X

R/R please! I've never written in the Bleach category before. I guess this is somewhat of a big day for me then!

-Maiden


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